


Just Different

by inatshej



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Cultural References, Cute, Ice Skating, M/M, Minor Allison Argent/Isaac Lahey/Scott McCall, Minor Lydia Martin/Jackson Whittemore, POV Stiles, Sweet, Wordcount: 1.000-5.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-14
Updated: 2017-01-14
Packaged: 2018-09-17 11:51:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9322367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inatshej/pseuds/inatshej
Summary: Stiles likes Derek. Derek likes him. There should be no problems, then, right? Except there is. Derek thinks Stiles is perfect. He doesn't know Stiles' true, rambling, disappointing side.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for any mistakes, English is not my first language.   
> It's tagged Cultural References, but that's only because Norman Davies is mentioned. It doesn't really affet the plot. I just wanted him there :D

1\. Helping the sheriff  
He hears someone coming in and, remembering he's supposed to cover for deputy Parrish, he looks up.  
'Uh, Stiles?'.  
He stares at Derek Hale.  
'Yep?'.  
The boy continues to watch him, surprise written on his face.  
'I'm helping out my dad, because it's this time of a year when everyone gets sick, including some of the deputies'.  
'Oh'. Derek's eyes are still on him, but his expression changes to amazement. It makes Stiles rather uncomfortable.   
'Um, can I help you, or something?', he asks.  
'Uh, yeah, I just wanted an access to one record'.  
'Oh, sure', Stiles lights up. Derek smiles tentatively and watches him search for the right form. When Stiles takes one of the sheets out, helps him fill it up and hands the requested record, he is clearly impressed.  
Stiles feels kind of bad about it, but doesn't know what to say, and so pretends not to see it.  
'Is it for that history project?', he asks, just to facepalm mentally. Derek is a jock, and even if his sister, Laura, loves history, he wouldn't go out of his way to-  
'Yeah'.  
'Wow, you're working hard', he answers after a moment of shock.  
Derek smiles and Stiles turns away, his face heating up.

2\. Helping Scott  
'I feel horrible'.  
'You look horrible'.  
'You look worse on a good day'.  
'Don't talk, talking's painful'.  
'Life's painful'.  
'I thought you felt better in that re... realm... regard'.  
'I did, yesterday. Thanks for the gross, vomit-inducing beer'.  
'No problem'.   
'Thanks for hangover pining'.  
'Yeah, you know, what are friends for? And, just don't think 'bout her, dude'.  
'She is right here'.  
'Where?'. Stiles looks up and around the lunch hall, searching for Allison and finding her close by with Lydia. 'Oh'. He notices Derek sitting just behind him and startles, then turns quickly to his table.   
'Doesn't matter, she can't see me anyway', says Scott, dejected.  
'That was so bitterly cheesy. I will get you drunk tonight as well'.  
Scott groaned.

3\. Helping Lydia  
Lydia doesn't really feel better because of ice skating, but maybe it's enough to just take her mind off stuff, off Jackson for now, to change something around her. Scott and Allison (dating again) skate away and Stiles looks after them. Turns out some other guys from the school came as well.  
'Isaac!', Scott waves at the boy.  
Funny, Stiles spotted Derek first.  
He follows Lydia, closing to the rest of the group. Isaac talks with Scott and Allison, while Laura puts on her ice skates.  
'Hey', says Derek, watching Stiles and Lydia with a weird expression.  
Lydia sighs and gives him a look. 'We're not dating, Hale', she says before going out of the rink.  
'Uh, do you want me to-', starts Stiles, his eyes flicking between her and Derek.  
'No. Your turn to be all gross', she answers coolly. 'I'll go with Allison, Scott and Isaac to a cafe'.  
'But Isaac-', starts Stiles, frowning.  
'You want to come with us to a cafe?', she asks the blond boy. He nods, surprised, but smiling brightly at the idea – he doesn't seem to regret not going ice skating.  
'Uh, okay', says Stiles to noone in particular. There is an uncomfortable silence between him and Derek, so he speaks up, trying to cover it. 'We just went out for skating, because you know, with Lydia-', he grimaces. Probably the whole school knew by now that Jackson broke up with her. '...and we thought it would be a nice change of pace'.  
'Uh', replies Derek.  
Stiles glances at him, encouraging whatever he has to say.  
'You want to go out somewhere as well?'.  
Stiles stares at the boy. 'What?'.  
He blushes and averts his eyes. 'Do you want to go out?'.  
'Like, dating?', Stiles inquiers after a while. Except it can't be dating, right? It's Derek.  
Derek's eyes flicks up to his, then he turns away, and nods.  
Well.  
'I-', he starts, wanting to say all kinds of yes, before realising how Derek actually saw him. Helping his dad at the station. Getting drunk with Scott to make him forget about Allison. And now, going out to skate with Lydia. 'I-, don't know', he finishes lamely.  
Derek was a jock. He was supposed to be self-confident and cool. Now, he was flushing, hesitant, a slight frown on his face as he was looking at Stiles.  
'Sorry', Stiles says automatically. Derek turns and nods once before going away.  
He looks after him, only now understanding that it sounded as if he rejected Derek, but stops himself from following the boy. It should be better like that. Derek didn't really know him. He'd be just disappointed.

4\. Helping Derek  
Mrs Argent is scary. That's why most of the students sweat at the history classes and take their notes furiously. Stiles has a different strategy – he highlights calmly key words in his textbook, doesn't really listen to her but takes notes. Sometimes. Leisurely.  
He got an A from his project and is about to go out of the classroom on a break to buy a celebratory muffin when he sees Derek's paper.  
'She failed you?', he asks, incredulous. 'But you even got that record from the station'. Stiles sits down next to him and reaches for the work, then halts. 'Um, can I see it?'.  
Derek nods.   
'Aah, okay, I think you should've started from this event here-', he starts explaining to the boy. When he is done, Derek looks at him with the same surprised, thankful expression he had when they met at the police station. Stiles flashes him a freaked out smile, the situation from Derek's perspective hitting him suddenly, and leaves quickly.

5\. Helping Laura  
'Norman Davies will have a lecture in Beacon Hills', states Laura.  
'No way', Stiles answers, amazed.  
'Yeah', she replies, grinning. 'I just have to convince the school to take us to it, cause it's during school hours'.  
'I'm with you. Totally'.  
'Of course you are. You owe me anyway. Back then at the ice rink I had to cheer up Derek'.   
Stiles turns away before she can see whatever it is on his face. Something guilty, probably.  
They manage to persuade their principal, Mr Deaton, and Stiles decides to forget others' disbelieving faces and words, that anyone would want to hear more about history outside from the school.   
He leaves the Davies' lecture feeling as if he's suddenly become much wiser and intelligent.  
'Stiles?'.  
'Oh, hey, Derek'. Stiles looks at him, smiling a bit. Derek changed some stuff in his project and Mrs Argent checked it – this time he got B+. He was amazing.   
'I-', Derek starts, then averts his eyes. 'Thank you for helping Laura'.  
'No, that's-', Stiles shakes his head. 'I wanted to hear the lecture as well'.  
'Still, she felt much better having someone support her idea', Derek replies, glancing at him.  
Stiles doesn't respond, just gives Derek a tight smile before quickening his steps to catch up to Scott, Allison and Isaac. To feel like the third wheel, pun unintended.   
Why does Derek seem to think so highly of Stiles? He isn't that great, he is not perfect, not worth his admiration.   
He just isn't.

+1 Helping Stiles  
Lydia is busy since Jackson is trying to make up to her. Scott plays truant with Allison and Isaac. Stiles should be jealous, but oddly, he is not. Isaac calms down the drama between Allison and Scott. They haven't broken up and got together and broken up and got together again since Isaac's been hanging out with them.   
Besides, Derek was there for him. Though rejected, he didn't impose on Stiles, quite the opposite – Stiles needed to talk with someone. He feels guilty about it, because Derek's a great listener, but it's like giving this a chance, when honestly, it's pointless. He shouldn't try anything with Derek, but the boy just makes everything better. Like now, when he comes up with two coffees and a muffin.  
'Thanks', says Stiles, taking a sip of a drink. His favourite. Of course.  
Derek smiles a bit and glimpses at him through his eyelashes. Jesus.  
Stiles looks away. 'Why'd you get me a muffin?', he inquiers instead.  
'I thought you usually take it'.  
'Yeah', nods Stiles. 'It's not healthy'.  
Derek laughs a little. 'Nobody's perfect', he shrugs.  
Stiles freezes at first, but then puts down his coffee, muffin, and turns to stare at him. 'Do you mean that?', he asks, completely still. 'That nobody's perfect?'.  
Derek aquiesces, unsure about the sudden tension.   
'Because you have seen me helping and all, but it's not true. I get jealous easily', starts Stiles, withal gazing intensely at Derek. 'I'm too curious to stop myself from meddling, and I eat trash food'.  
'I know'.  
Stiles frowned. 'You know?'.  
Derek shrugged. 'We have spent some time together recently'.  
'But, aren't you', Stiles paused and looked elsewhere, 'disappointed?'.  
'No', denied Derek, confused. 'You're just-, different'.  
'Different, as in I thought you're a jock, but here you are, shy, but working so hard, blushing, caring about your family?'.  
Derek glared at him, but it didn't quite had the intended effect with his flush.  
Stiles smiled a bit, then turned away. 'I'm sorry about earlier, behaving like that. I tried to stay away from you, but you just make it so hard'.  
Derek stared at him.  
'Besides, I could change, you know, grow and all that', added Stiles with a shrug, finding his coffee fascinating to observe.  
Derek furrowed his eyebrows. 'Like what Norman Davies said, that people and cultures change?'.  
And just with that, Stiles is gone. 'You were listening to that lecture?', he asks, grinning at Derek's nod and just watching the boy for a while. 'I really like you, you know?', he said, stepping closer, marveling at the red tips of Derek's ears, hope rising in his chest. 'I want to see more of you'.  
Derek finally looks up at him. 'Me too', he says softly, glancing at Stiles, his pupils dilated.  
They were really close now, staring at each other, both blushing at the proximity, but neither withdrawing.  
'I-, um, I don't know, it could be weird what I want to say now, because I haven't really been with anyone-'.  
'Me neither', interjected Derek, still watching him.  
'...but I just really feel like kissing you now, but we don't have to if you don't want-'.  
'Stiles'.  
'Shit, you see? You're great. You stop my rambling. Because I do that. I ramble'.  
'I know', smiled Derek.  
This time Stiles couldn't help it – he leaned in and kissed him. It was more of everything he thought it would be. Different, but still wonderful. Just like Derek for him.  
Just like him for Derek.


End file.
